This invention provides a method of treating multiple sclerosis in mammals.
Multiple sclerosis was first described as a clinical entity in 1868. Clinically, it is a highly variable disease, which usually begins between the second and fifth decades of life. The most common signs of multiple sclerosis are sensory and visual motor dysfunction. In the chronic form the patient has periods of remission, but with each remission there is greater neurological dysfunction.
Macroscopically, multiple sclerosis involves lesions of 1 to 4 cm called plaques scattered throughout the white matter of the central nervous system. Microscopically, the disease is characterized by a breakdown of the nervous system's myelin sheath. There is also a loss of myelin basic protein in the area of the lesions.
The etiology and pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis remains obscure. Both chronic infectious agents and auto-immunity have been involved and, in fact, both might be important. Meanwhile, the need continues for safer, better calibrated drugs which will either slow the process of neurodegeneration associated with multiple sclerosis or even prevent such neurodegeneration altogether.
It is an object of this invention to provide a new method for treating multiple sclerosis, which method comprises administering a compound selected from among certain phenols and benzamides of the general formula ##STR1## Such phenols and benzamides are known in the art and have been found to possess various utilities.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,305,483 discloses that certain phenols of the above formula can be used as an antioxidant for various substances such as gasoline, diesel fuel, heating oil, lubricating oil, asphalt, petroleum wax and high molecular weight hydrocarbon polymers. Chemical Abstracts, 97, 200429m (1982) teaches that 4-(2-dimethylaminoethyl)-2,6-di-t-butylphenol can be used as an antioxidant for jet aircraft fuel. European Patent Application 42,589 describes the use of various of the above phenols as antioxidants for polymeric norbornene type polymeric materials.
Chemical Abstracts, 88, 38847m (1978) discloses that 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-[N,N-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)aminomethyl]phenol can be used to increase the heat resistance of certain fibers. Chemical Abstracts, 88, 192135j (1978) teaches that 1-phenyl-4-(3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxybenzyl)piperazine is a noncolorizing thermostabilizer for stress-stable polystyrene. 2-(3,5-Di-t-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)ethylmethylamine is described as being useful for improving the lightfastness of dyed polyester fibers in Chemical Abstracts, 76, 7362q (1972).
Chemical Abstracts, 77, 141203v (1972) teaches that 3-(dimethylamino)propylaminobis(4-methylene-2,6-di-t-butylphenol can be used to improve the aging resistance of diene rubber. Chemical Abstracts, 91 212411p (1979) describes a 1:1 pyrocatechol/4-[(di-methylamino)methyl]-2,6-di-t-butylphenol complex which deactivates transition metals in rubber. N,N-dimethyl-3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxybenzylamine is disclosed to be an effective polymerization inhibitor for styrene in Chemical Abstracts, 100, 35563w (1984). Chemical Abstracts, 107, 42468s (1987) discloses that 3-(4-hydroxy-3,5-di-t-butylphenyl)-1-aminopropane acetate or N-(4-hydroxy-3,5-di-t-butylbenzyl)-N-(.beta.-aminoethyl)piperazine hydrochloride can be used to modify cation exchange resins so as to reduce the diffusive permeability of the resin membrane and increase its sodium ion transport properties.
Several of the phenols and benzamides of the general formula set forth above have also been found to possess various pharmacological activities. U.S. Pat. No. 5,281,623 discloses that such compounds can be used to treat inflammatory conditions and muscular dystrophy or prevent ischemia-induced cell damage. European Patent Application No. 474,403 teaches such compounds can be used to treat inflammatory bowel disease. U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,046 discloses that the above compounds can be used to treat Type I diabetes. U.S. Pat. No. 3,809,761 discloses that certain of the above phenols can be used to reduce mammalian plasma lipid levels. Chemical Abstracts, 73, 86385w (1970) and Chemical Abstracts, 66, 16925d (1967) teach that certain of the above phenols have anti-tumor activity. Chemical Abstracts, 74, 96312e (1971) discloses that (4-hydroxy-3,5-di-t-butylbenzyl)methylamine hydrochloride increases the antioxidative activity of liver lipids, thereby increasing liver tissue regeneration following a partial hepatectomy. N-methyl-3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxybenzylamine is said to be able to increase the rate of blood deoxygenation in Chemical Abstracts, 78, 132326f (1973). Finally, Chemical Abstracts, 109, 129047u (1988) discloses that certain benzamides of the above formula are useful for treating epilepsy and high blood pressure.
The phenols and benzamides employed in the method of the present invention have not heretofore been used to treat multiple sclerosis. The known activities of such compounds, as set forth above, in no way suggest the method of the present invention. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new pharmacological use for certain known phenols and benzamides.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent description and the appended claims.